title: Salvage chemotherapy for breast cancer patients treated with adjuvant adriamycin-containing regimen.
abstract: Purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of salvage chemotherapy given to women with breast cancer in relapse who had in the past received adjuvant treatment including adriamycin. Fourty-nine evaluable patients had an adjuvant chemotherapy with CMFAV in 6 or 12 cycles. On relapse these patients received either adriamycin 40 mg/m2, mitomycin 8 mg/m2 and vinblastine 6 mg/m2 (group A) or dibromodulcitol 500 mg, mitomycin 8 mg/m2 and vinblastine 6 mg/m2 (group B). In Group A, 22 patients with a mean age of 49.2 years relapsed 14 months on average after the end of adjuvant treatment. In 11 of them the main site of relapse was visceral. In group B, 27 patients with a mean age 49.5 years relapsed 6.5 months on average after the end of adjuvant treatment. In 15 of them the main site of relapse was visceral. According to the disease-free interval (DFI), in group A with DFI less than 12 months 3 patients (23%) responded partially whereas in patients with DFI longer than 12 months 4 patients (44.4%) had a partial response. In group B with DFI less than 12 months 4 patients (21%) responded partially, whereas 2 (25%) responded with DFI longer than 12 months. We conclude that salvage chemotherapy in this group of patients with an adriamycin-containing regimen is superior to a non-adriamycin regimen only if the DFI is longer than 12 months.
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Medical Oncology, Metaxa Cancer Hospital, Piraeus, Greece.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Kosmidis
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kondylis
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lissaios
mesh_terms: D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D015996:Survival Rate
chemical_list: D004317:Doxorubicin